


Santa's Grotto

by rikujo (helphiddlestoned)



Series: 25 Days of Fic [19]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: 25 Days of Fic, Alternate Universe - Human, Christmas Fluff, Day 19: Santa, FACE Family, Gen, M/M, Visiting Santa Claus, the NA Bros are little in this one, word limit? never heard of it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-19
Updated: 2017-12-19
Packaged: 2019-02-17 06:14:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13070832
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/helphiddlestoned/pseuds/rikujo
Summary: A trip to visit Santa Claus is an absolute necessity for any young family at Christmas time.





	Santa's Grotto

**Author's Note:**

> Day 19! FACE Family AUs are my weakness, I swear, so have one.

“Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad, _Dad_!”

This was the sound that had become the backing track to Arthur’s life for the past ten minutes and he’d learnt to tune it out entirely, unless it rose in pitch in a way that suggested an imminent explosion, by the time Alfred and Matthew were three.

Of course, Matthew never did it. No, the one hopping up and down beside him and tugging repeatedly on his hand as they made their way through the shopping centre was Alfred.

“ _Dad_ , Dad, Dad. Seriously, _dad_!” Alfred whined, yanking harder than ever, and Arthur sighed heavily.

“Alfred, we are _not_ buying the giant toy polar bear.” he refused.

“That’s so dumb, it’s awesome! And Mattie loves it, that’s why he was staring at it!”

“Al, it’s ludicrously expensive and five feet long. It wouldn’t fit anywhere in the house.” Arthur tried to reason with him, but using logic on six year olds rarely worked. “We aren’t buying it.” he repeated firmly, internally cursing the department store managers that ordered in these giant stuffed toys for their displays.

“Ugh, no fair!” Alfred grumbled. “You’re gonna make Mattie cry.”

Arthur was entirely unaffected by this unsubtle attempt at manipulation. “I think you’ll find your brother is far from crying, Alfred. Hence why _he_ hasn’t been complaining for the past ten minutes.”

Matthew was indeed perfectly quiet, settled happily in Francis’s arms a little way ahead of them and occasionally pointing at things around the shopping centre as they made their way through the Christmas crowds. It was much slower going for Arthur, with Alfred dragging his feet.

“But Mattie _loves_ polar bears!”

“So he does – which begs the question why do _you_ want it so badly?”

“It’s _huge_!”

Somehow Arthur wasn’t surprised by this response. Giving up trying to navigate the crowds with Alfred’s small steps, he bent down and hefted the boy into his arms. It was a damn bit harder to do than it once was and he let out a small grunt as he settled Alfred on his hip.

The twins really were growing at an alarming rate.

“Its largeness is exactly the problem, Al.” Alfred opened his mouth but Arthur was quicker. “But how about we focus on visiting Santa. Why don’t you ask him about it, hm?”

Mercifully, the distraction tactic worked. Alfred’s eyes lit up and he turned, pointing towards Francis and Matthew. “Yeah, I will! Full speed ahead!”

Arthur held back a chuckle at the sudden exuberance but did pick up his pace a little, weaving through the large volume of people more easily now, until he could nudge his shoulder gently against Francis’s to make his husband turn.

“We’ve agreed that Santa will handle the polar bear.” he relayed.

Francis smiled, eyes shining. “Have you? How interesting that will be for Santa.”

“Mm, yes, I thought so.” Arthur agreed as they rounded the last corner and ‘Santa’s Grotto’ came into sight.

It had to be said, the shopping centre had done a fairly impressive job. From the little mock-wood cabin topped with fake snow to the giant, standing candy-canes dotted around the place, it was a six year old’s dreamland. Both Alfred and Matthew’s mouths dropped as they approached, their eyes wide with awe.

It was amazing how delightful they were when distracted.

“Papa, look.” Matthew piped up, tugging gently on Francis’s sleeve, and then he pointed out the fairy-lights strung along the cabin roof and between the candy-canes.

“Oui, they’re pretty, aren’t they, mon chou?” Francis agreed pleasantly.

“…We can put some up at home, if you like.” Arthur put in, making Matthew’s eyes dart his way.

“We can?”

Arthur nodded. “We’ve got another box besides the multi-coloured ones on the tree. We could put the spares up somewhere.”

This knowledge made Matthew’s cheeks fairly flush with happiness and he nodded hastily, smiling as they passed under a string of the lights to approach the grotto. Mercifully, they seemed to have come at a quiet moment as there was no queue, and once inside they were immediately greeted by an ‘elf’. The woman in red and green striped tights offered the boys a perfect smile as Arthur and Francis finally set them both down again.

“Welcome to Santa’s grotto! Are you two ready to meet Santa and tell him what you want for Christmas?”

Arthur was never quite sure whether the whole Santa farce made him want to laugh or cry, but so far the boys had been nothing short of delighted every year—as was evident in Alfred’s spirited reply.

“Yeah!”

Matthew gave a more restrained nod as Alfred began practically bouncing from foot to foot. “Yes, please.”

The woman giggled fondly and Arthur marvelled, not for the first time, at the patience of people in retail. They were led through a red curtain into a larger space to find ‘Santa’ sat on a large, red cushioned wood chair. Arthur didn’t fail to notice how Alfred’s eyes darted briefly to the two large sacks of presents on either side of Santa, however. Thankfully, Santa spread his arms wide in greeting.

“Ho, ho, ho, Merry Christmas!” he called. “Come right up here and tell me what you want for Christmas.”

He and Francis hung back as they rushed forward, the kind elf helping them both up to sit on a knee each, and truthfully Arthur zoned out a little.

He already knew half the things they’d ask for, given that he and Francis had been living with frequent reminders for the past month, and anything else was sure to be recounted afterwards. He smiled as he took in their captivated expressions, though, and began paying proper attention again as they rounded off. Beside him, Francis slipped his phone from his pocket.

“Hold on a moment.” Francis put in, lifting the phone and lining up the camera. “Smile boys!” The boys smiled on cue, Alfred’s beaming expression as cheerful as ever, and there was a click. Francis stood back with a satisfied nod. “There, perfect. Ah, they are so precious – Arthur, look at this.”

Arthur shook his head, but his smile remained. “That must be the fifth one you’ve taken today. At this rate we’ll have whole hard-drives full of photos.”

“You’ll thank me when they’re 18 and no longer this adorable. It’ll give us something to cry over when they move out.” Francis replied casually, flicking through his camera roll with a smile.

Arthur, however, balked at the words, his body going slack.

“When they…move out.” he repeated numbly. Suddenly he was staring unseeingly at the carpet and Francis lifted his head with a curious sound. His husband blinked at him.

“Arthur, are you alright?”

Arthur shoved his hands in his pockets. Glancing over at the boys as they hopped off Santa’s lap, Alfred babbling at a mile per minute as Matthew smiled gently beside him, he felt his heart clench.

He cleared his throat.

“I’m fine.”

A soft, disbelieving huff of laughter left Francis’s lips. Then, ever so gentle, fingers reached out to brush against his cheek as Francis caught his eyes.

“Arthur, that is _not_ something you need to be thinking about now. I was joking, you know.” Francis shook his head. “They’re only six. We have plenty of time.”

Arthur swallowed. “Well yes, but—”

“There is no but, Arthur. I know they’re growing like weeds but there’s no point worrying about the time passing. You must simply enjoy it while it happens. That is the only way we can appreciate every minute of it, no?” he finished in a murmur, his thumb caressing jaw.

It took a second, but Arthur gave a stilted nod. “…I know.” he muttered. “I’d just never really thought about them…all grown-up before.”

Francis shifted a little closer, his fingers slipping down onto Arthur’s neck to trace gentle, reassuring circles into the skin. “I see that, but it’s a long way off, even if sometimes it doesn’t feel like it. And I have every minute well documented.” he added, lifting his other hand to pointedly wiggle his phone with a smile.

Arthur gave a soft snort. “Yes, I suppose you do.”

Francis leant forward, capturing his lips just briefly, and Arthur slipped a hand from his pocket to rest it on Francis’s hip. “For now, you should focus on the present.” Francis suggested. “Like what we do if Santa has promised them the giant polar bear, hm?”

Arthur suppressed a groan. “God these things are bloody awful.” he grumbled half-heartedly as they stepped back. “No-one ever asks me what I want for Christmas either, you know.”

His lips twitching, Francis reached down to tangle their fingers together, raising an eyebrow at him.

“What do you want for Christmas?”

“Well peace and goodwill to all men is traditional, but a nice bottle of Port wouldn’t go amiss.”

Francis laughed, high and bright enough to return a smile to Arthur’s face. His husband shook his head though.

“Mon amour, we have six year olds. I don’t think either of us will have peace any time soon – we’ll see about the wine, though.”

Arthur hummed, looking over at where Matthew and Alfred were each accepting a tiny red and green present from an elf, their eyes wide and excited, before lightly squeezing Francis’s hand in his.

“That’s fine.” he murmured. “Peace is overrated.”

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments are very much appreciated! You can also come and bother me at anglaisaph on tumblr ❤


End file.
